Neko Story
by demoncookie8D
Summary: AU. Gaara's moved around a lot, but nothing could have prepared him for meeting Naruto and all his friends. Can he keep up with all of them and still keep his secret hidden?
1. Chapter 1

Ok, extremely nervous about this new story. I obviously don't own Naruto. Would I be posting on here if I did? Please tell me what you think after you've read please.

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><p>The wind picked up, pelting the lone little boy on the street. He whimpered as the icy wind blew straight through the meager, thin layer that he was wearing. The weather was doing nothing for the hybrid's mood, which had had him close to tears long before the storm had ever started. He wrapped his soaked tail around his drawn up knees, trying to preserve even a small amount of body heat to stay warm. He kept his head down, the abnormally large ears laying flat on his head allowing water to drip off of them and onto his shoulders.<p>

"Gaara!" His head shot up, ears twitching, trying to see if his mind was playing tricks on him.

"Gaara!" That was definitely real. His head went this way and that, attempting to find the source of the voice. He was startled when an out of breath Temari and Kankuro suddenly appeared before him

"There- (pant) –you are! (pant pant) We've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Where-" Gaara cut off Kankuro before he could say anything else by jumping up, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and burying his face in the crook of his neck. Kankuro looked over at his sister before holding onto the smaller boy latched onto him, putting one arm under him while the other rubbed up and down his back.

"You're fine now, I promise. You're going to be fine." Temari simply smiled and shook her head, turning and walking in the direction of the flat they were renting. The rain had lightened up on the walk back, which was something all of them were grateful for. Gaara hadn't loosened his hold at all by the time they'd gotten back and Kankuro chuckled as he had to gently pry the shivering arms off of him.

"Oi, come on Gaara, you need to warm up." Gaara didn't reply, he was shivering too badly to. Temari, who had walked away to start a bath, came back to the entryway.

"Come on Gaara, don't you want to warm up?" The smaller boy nodded, his teeth still chattering.

"There's a warm bath ready, just head back, k?"

"Th-thank yo-ou."

"No problem." Temari looked over at Kankuro as their little brother went to get warm.

"Don't get too mad at him Kankuro, you know how he is." He simply sighed, taking off his dripping shoes and hat.

"Yeah I know, I wasn't gunna get angry. I'm just worried about tomorrow." Temari nodded her head in understanding.

"Did you write the note?"

"Yeah, it's on the table." Temari let out an aggravated breath, staring intently at the wall.

"I hate doing this. It's not fair!" He sighed, looking up at her from taking off his socks.

"Would you have it any other way?" She softened at that, the tension leaving her as she gave him a small smile.

"Never."

"Temari?" Said girl quickly turned around and smiled at her little brother, who was standing in the hallway with a large towel around his waist.

"Hey come on, you should be asleep." He simply stood there, his teal eyes going back and forth between Temari and Kankuro.

"Are you mad?" The two shared a glance before Kankuro decided to answer.

"We're not mad, just get some sleep, ok?" He slowly nodded, bringing up a hand to cover his yawn. "'Night."

"Goodnight."

"Sweet Dreams."

XxX

"Gaara! Come on!" They weren't going to be late, but Temari definitely didn't like how long her brother was taking. She was about to call out again when she saw her brother walk in the kitchen pulling a long sleeve brown shirt over his head.

"Morning."

"Morning…" Temari smiled at how tired he sounded.

"Sleep well?" He nodded slowly, rubbing his eyes.

"That's good." She set a plate of taiyaki in front of him, immediately getting his attention. His hears perked up as he looked up at her, a large smile gracing his features making him look a lot younger than he actually was.

"Thank you Temari." She smiled at him, ruffling his hair a bit.

"No problem. Want some milk?" He quickly nodded, his tail swishing happily back and forth behind him. Gaara turned around to glare at his older brother as he walked in the kitchen. Kankuro just chuckled and went to the cupboard to get a glass down.

"Eat up, we don't want to be late." Gaara simply stuck his tongue out at him before turning back to his plate to start eating. Temari chuckled at the two as she sat down the glass of milk in front of her youngest brother.

"Pack your bag Gaara?" He nodded, not wanting to talk with his mouth full.

"You didn't forget the note?" He nodded again, still eating.

"Alright, I'm going to finish getting ready." She walked out, giving Kankuro a warning look before exiting. He simply rolled his eyes at her, giving her an exasperated look in return. Kankuro and Gaara finished their respective breakfasts in silence, Kankuro taking his younger brother's dishes when he went to wash them in the sink.

"Go check your bag." Gaara nodded, confused but not questioning it. He walked out of the kitchen, turning down the hall toward his bedroom. He walked in and looked around for his bag, even going so far as to check under the bed. That was how Temari found him, tail high in the air with his head under the bed.

"Nice hiding spot." She stifled a chuckle as she heard a loud thunk when her little brother's head connected with the bed. He slowly came out from under the bed.

"I wasn't hiding. I can't find my bag." Gaara had a hand to the back of his head, his lips forming a pout as he kept his eyes downcast. Temari immediately felt bad as she went forward and knelt in front of him, gently running a hand over one of his ears.

"Sorry. It's by the door, I already checked it for you." She smiled, leaning forward to kiss the top of his head.

"Feeling better?"

"Oi! Come on! We need to get going here!" Temari helped Gaara up when they heard Kankuro shout from the front hall.

"Don't forget your hat." He quickly nodded and ran back to get it, leaving Temari and Kankuro by the front door.

"You really think this is ok?" Temari nodded, staring off at the wall.

"We can't keep him locked up you know." He simply sighed, running a hand through his short brown hair. Gaara came back out before either of them could say anything else on the matter. He was wearing a large black knitted hat that hid his ears perfectly, his tail safely wrapped around his abdomen under his shirt.

"Ready." Temari smiled, handing off Gaara's bag to their brother as she turned to unlock and open the door.

"It's your first day, let him carry it." Gaara laughed as he went out of the door, Kankuro simply rolling his eyes and shouldering the bag as he followed them out, locking the door behind them.

XxX

Gaara slowed down noticeably as they got closer to the school. Temari saw this and looked back at Kankuro, who simply raised an eyebrow at her. She glared until he caved, giving her a peeved look.

"You don't need to slow down Gaara. Everything will be fine." Gaara glanced back at that, giving his brother a worried look.

"Are you sure?" Kankuro simply nodded and continued walking. They finally got to the school a few minutes later, the rest of the walk having been in silence. The main building was entirely brick with a few smaller yet just as impressive brick buildings around other parts of the large campus. Kankuro waved his hand in front of his brother's face as he continued to stare at the large structures in front of him. Gaara's head snapped back when he noticed the large object suddenly obstructing his view.

"Yes?" He slipped the bag off of his shoulder, handing it over to the red head.

"Here, take it. Bag service is up." Gaara took the bag and held it on front of himself, crossing his arms over it as he continued to stare at all of the other students milling about.

"We're gunna head out now, alright?" Gaara looked over at his sister before taking a deep breath.

"Yeah, I guess." She turned around to look at Kankuro but just rolled her eyes when she saw him already walking away.

"We both have to work late tonight. You ok walking back on your own?" He slowly nodded, gripping the bag a bit tighter against him. She smiled and hugged him quickly.

"Do your best." She gave him one last hug before turning and walking away, waving at the gate before disappearing from view entirely. Gaara took a deep breath before turning back to face the school.

"Hey!" He jumped as he heard someone call out loudly.

"Hey!" The red headed boy dropped his bag in fright as a boy with bright blond hair suddenly appeared before him.

"Dobe, you shouldn't scare people, they'll start running away." Gaara looked over to see another boy walking toward them with pale skin and long, spiky black hair.

"I know that Teme! I didn't mean to scare him that bad." The raven simply rolled his onyx eyes at the blond before bending down to hand Gaara his schoolbag.

"I apologize for Naruto's behavior. I'm Sasuke, nice to meet you." He gave him a small smile as he took his schoolbag back.

"Thank you. I'm Gaara." Sasuke nodded his head at him and looked away.

"Cool! Say, what's the hat for?" Gaara blanched at the question, a hand going up to his head defensively. Fortunately he was saved by another boy who looked to be about as loud and rambunctious as Naruto.

"I can't believe you ditched us! Why'd ya come over here anyways?" Naruto pointed at Gaara, who fought the urge to bat at the appendage.

"I came over to talk to him. His name's Gaara." The new boy seemed to study Gaara, his head tilted to the side in a canine-like manner. Gaara, uncomfortable under the heavy scrutiny, glared at him.

"Doesn't look very friendly." Sasuke rolled his eyes again, shaking his head.

"He probably doesn't like being stared at dog-breath." Now it was Gaara's turn to tilt his head to the side at the strange nickname.

"What'd ya call me princess?" He took up a fighting pose as he glared at Sasuke, whose posture had gone stiff as he glared right back.

"Stop while you're ahead mutt." He growled low at Sasuke and would've jumped him if a hand on his chest hadn't prevented him from doing so. They all glanced at it's owner as the opposite hand went in front of Sasuke to stop any potential movement.

"Stop it Kiba, you shouldn't be fighting on the first day of school. Stop egging him on Sasuke, you should know better." Both of them glared at the newcomer, a bored looking boy with a ponytail high in the top of his head.

"Damn it!" Everyone's head snapped around to Naruto, who was marching up to a surprised Sasuke, poking him in the chest.

"You _promised_ you wouldn't pick fights with my friends this year Teme!" Naruto said as he roughly pushed Sasuke out of the way, running off into the school. Gaara heard Sasuke curse before he jogged after him. Gaara looked at the new boy, obviously confused. He looked over and saw this, sighing while bringing up a hand to rub at the back of his neck.

"Troublesome." He shoved his hands in his pockets, tilting his head back to stare at the sky.

"Just ignore them, they fight every once in a while. They always get over it though." Gaara simply stood there and nodded. The lazy boy sighed again, knowing his job wasn't done.

"Oi, Kiba. Didn't Shino want to see you before school started?" The brunette seemed to brighten considerably at the reminder, completely forgetting about the almost-fight he'd had with Sasuke just moments before.

"Oh yeah! See ya!" Shikamaru shook his head at how energetic all his friends could be.

"What was that?" Shikamaru sent another glance to the red head, almost laughing at the confusion in his eyes.

"_That_ was normal. Welcome to your first day at school."


	2. Chapter 2

Gomen for the wait people.

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><p>Shikamaru sighed as the red head continued to look around, barely paying any attention to the people he very nearly walked into.<p>

"Yo." He waved his hand in front of the shorter boy's face, trying to get his attention.

"Do you know which homeroom you're going to?" Gaara quickly nodded his head, reaching into his bag to pull out a piece of paper.

"Here." Shikamaru resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he took the paper and moved out of someone's way in the hall.

"You're in the same homeroom as I am. Follow me, k?" Gaara nodded, taking back the paper and slipping it in his bag. They started walking slowly down the hall to the designated room, trying to slip into the back of the room inconspicuously as possible. Shikamaru grabbed the far back seat next to the window, watching as the smaller boy followed him and took the seat next to him.

"Oi, I'm Shikamaru by the way." Gaara looked up at him as he sat his bag on the floor.

"I'm Gaara. Nice to meet you." Shikamaru offered his hand and they shared a quick handshake.

"What-"

"Hey Shikamaru." The teen looked up and smiled at his friend that was happily snacking away on a bag of chips.

"Hey."

"Who's he?" Gaara sunk back into his seat as the larger boy's attention focused on him, worried he might have to move.

"Choji-Gaara, vice versa…" Gaara nodded his head at the boy.

"Nice to meet you." Choji pulled out the chair in the row in front of them in front of Shikamaru, still eating his chips.

"You hear about Naruto and Sasuke again?" Shikamaru nodded, putting his head in his right hand.

"Was there when it happened." Choji shook his head as he stopped eating for a moment.

"How long do you think it'll last this time?" Gaara leaned forward, putting his hands between his knees, interested in knowing more about what had gone on this morning. Shikamaru shrugged his shoulders, his expression going, if possible, even more bored.

"Shouldn't last more than a day if even that long."

"This happens a lot?" Choji nodded as he resumed eating.

"They fight but they're nuts about each other so it never really lasts all that long." Gaara nodded at Shikamaru's answer.

"If they're such good friends then why do they fight so much?" Shikamaru gave him an odd look while Choji appeared to have not heard him. Shikamaru opened his mouth to say something when he was interrupted by a skinny blond girl coming over. Gaara winced as she started speaking in a very loud obnoxious voice, almost instantly disliking her.

"Choji! Can't you stop eating for five minutes? You're never going to-"

"Leave him alone Ino." Ino scowled at the lazy boy and was about to go off on him when Gaara unintentionally distracted her.

"Naruto and Sasuke are here. Are they in this homeroom too?" Ino's head immediately swiveled to the front of the room where, indeed, Sasuke and Naruto were walking in looking a lot better than they had before. Ino walked over to go talk to Sasuke but stopped halfway when she bumped into another girl with pink hair. They immediately started arguing, forgetting their original goal. Gaara looked around, surprised that this was completely normal.

"Hey! I didn't know you were in our class!" Gaara jumped when he heard someone shout behind him. He spun around to see a grinning Naruto standing behind him. He looked back and forth between where he'd been standing to where he was now.

"What?" Gaara simply shook his head, facing forward again.

"Hey! What-"

"Just sit down Dobe." Naruto stuck his tongue out at him but grabbed the seat next to Choji.

"Happy now Teme?" Sasuke rolled his eyes and sat down in the last seat next to Naruto. Gaara watched as he saw Kiba come into the room with a boy with dark, spiky hair and sunglasses.

"Hey Shikamaru, who's that?" he glanced over to where Gaara was pointing.

"Shino. He's going out with Kiba." Gaara titled his head to the side, staring at Shikamaru in confusion.

"Where are they going?" Shikamaru's eyes widened before he closed them and rubbed his forehead.

"Troublesome." Gaara was about to ask him what he meant when someone sat down next to him. He had long, dark brown hair kept back with a tie near the bottom.

"Hello." Neji looked over at the red head, not recognizing him.

"Do I know you?" Gaara shook his head, never taking his eyes off the boy's paler ones.

"I'm Gaara. It's nice to meet you." Neji looked at the boy oddly, confused by his forwardness.

"Hyuga Neji." Gaara smiled at the Hyuga, keeping him off balance.

"Hey, where d'you go first?" Gaara turned back to Naruto leaving Neji to look over his head at Shikamaru who simply shrugged his shoulders.

"Gym I think, why?"

"That's mine too! Oi Teme, he's in the same-"

"I heard him just fine Naruto." Naruto stuck his tongue out at the emo boy again before turning to Shikamaru.

"What about you?" Shikamaru sighed, turning from the window as he realized he probably wasn't going to be able to nap today.

"English. Such a drag…"

"It shouldn't be that bad. Who's the gym teacher this year?" Shikamaru looked over at Choji with an almost pained expression before answering Naruto.

"Gai." The entire group sans Gaara and Shikamaru groaned at that. Gaara looked around at all of them in confusion.

"What's so bad about him?" Sasuke and Naruto shared a look while Shikamaru simply let his head fall on his desk.

"He's…" Gaara looked over at Neji who looked to be in deep thought.

"Energetic." Gaara tilted his head to the side and wondered just what the teacher was like.

"It can't be that bad."

XxX

Gaara followed Naruto and Sasuke to the gym, not really paying attention to where he was going again. He had almost run into Neji before he started to pay attention to where he was going.

"Sorry." Neji simply nodded and continued walking.

"Hey Gaara, you good at sports?" The red head turned back toward Naruto.

"I haven't played that many."

"We play a lot in this class. He's a fitness nut." Gaara laughed quietly when Neji snorted and commented,

"That's an interesting way to put it." Sasuke rolled his eyes and turned back around, pushing open the double doors in front of them. Gaara looked around at the various gymnastic equipment in the middle of the spacious, bright room.

"Do we use all that?" they walked over to a large group of students all waiting for the teacher to show up

"Some. Only the people who are really good use all of it." Gaara nodded at Sasuke's answer, still staring at the high bar that was at least twelve feet off the ground. Gaara looked back over at the crowd of students, looking for the boys he'd met this morning. He saw a flash of orange through the crowd as Naruto looked for more of his friends. Sasuke and Neji were off to the side talking lowly about something, somehow able to hear each other over the other students. Gaara started to wander around the group when their teacher finally decided to make an appearance.

"Welcome all of my youthful students! I am your instructor Gai-sensei. I will guide you all through your most youthful experiences in my class and…" Gaara tuned out the rest of what the loud teacher had to say, his head starting a dull throb. He walked over behind Sasuke who was farther from the teacher than most and waited for the overly energetic man to finish speaking. Sasuke looked back at him at one point and Gaara winced when Gai felt the need to emphasize something louder than what he considered normal. The raven nodded his head in sympathy and faced forward again, putting his hands in his pockets and slouching slightly. The three let out a sigh when Gai finally stopped to take a head-count. He frowned when he was done and recounted, certain he hadn't made a mistake.

"There's one missing. Do I need to take roll?" there was a slight pause before,

"Hey, where's Gaara?" Sasuke rolled his eyes at how loud Naruto was being.

"He's right here Dobe. You need your eyes checked?" Gai turned toward Sasuke and Gaara and frowned. _I'm not that short_…

"There you are! There's no need to hide when there is so much of youth yet to experience!" Gaara winced at the man's loud words but then laughed softly behind hand when he heard Neji mutter something low under his breath.

"I've experienced quite enough for the moment thank you very much."

XxX

The rest of the class was spent talking to various students through one of Gai's strange exercises meant to 'expand one's youthful circle of friends'. Gaara let out a sigh of relief when the bell rang. There had been another boy in the class that looked a lot like the teacher and was just as loud.

"Where are you going next?" Gaara looked down at his time-table and answered Sasuke.

"Science, why?" The raven quickly pulled him aside so no one would run into the smaller boy.

"Neji, can you walk him there?" The brunette looked over, surprised, but nodded his head.

"This way." He immediately tuned and started walking down the hallway leaving Gaara to catch up.

"Thank you." Neji nodded and continued walking until they reached the third floor.

"In here." Gaara continued to silently follow the Hyuga into a fairly large room with windows along the longest wall. The bell rang a few moments after they walked in and they quickly took two empty seats near the windows. Most of the beginning of class was pent going over the class' syllabus and room rules. Once that was done the teacher looked at the clock and sighed.

"Use the rest of the time to talk, just keep the volume down." The entire class broke out into conversation at this and Gaara watched as the teacher went back to his desk, put his head down, and appeared to have fallen asleep. After watching him for a few minutes he turned to the brunette next to him to find him reading a book.

"Hello." The Hyuga didn't look as he replied in a flat tone.

"Hello." He waited a few moments before speaking again.

"What are you reading?" Neji did look at that and was about to tell him to mind his own business when he paused. He saw no hint of fake interest or boredom in his eyes, just innocent curiosity.

"It's a book on the fates." Gaara stared at him while committing this to memory. The Hyuga felt slightly unnerved at his unwavering gaze but refused to back down.

"Do you like your book?" He nodded, still slightly unnerved that the boy had yet to blink. Despite this, he did not in fact find the boy's presence annoying unlike most of the other people he'd met.

"That's good then." Suddenly a thought occurred to Neji.

"Do you know how to get to your next class?" He watched as Gaara looked away and shook his head.

"What is it?" Gaara pulled his time-table out and handed it to him. He looked at it and was surprised to see that they had the next two classes together.

"Just follow me again, alright?" Almost as soon as he said this the bell rang and the two quickly left the room.

"Thank you again." The Hyuga nodded silently and moved down the hall, trying to go fast without loosing the other boy.

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><p>Another chapter finished! Sorry for the long wait, school has been evil v.v Please review and let me know what you think! :)<p> 


	3. Chapter 3

Sorry about the serious delay in this chapter.

Please enjoy!

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><p>Neji let out a sigh as the bell rang for his last class before lunch. He looked over at Gaara and found him staring intently at the teacher. <em>Odd…<em>

"You have lunch now, correct?" Gaara jumped slightly and blinked, looking over.

"Yes."

"Alright, follow me again then." Gaara nodded and Neji felt a bit strange. He wasn't used to being the one keeping up a conversation. People usually talked to him. They walked at a more leisurely pace on their way back to homeroom, Gaara giving him a look when the bell rang and they were still in the hallway.

"I thought you had to be everywhere before the bell." Neji shook his head and opened the door, walking in ahead of Gaara.

"Everything but lunch. You can take your time then." They walked in and sat down in the same seats they'd been in in homeroom. Gaara looked around, surprised to see everyone there.

"Does everyone have the same lunch?" Neji nodded and Gaara looked around again, startled to see blinding orange in front of him.

"Hey! How've you been? Get to your classes ok?" Gaara simply blinked at the rapid fire questions Naruto asked before answering him.

"Fine, and yes thank you." Naruto grinned and was about to open his mouth to say something else when Sasuke came over and tapped him tightly on the back of his head.

"Dobe leave him be. Let him eat." Naruto turned to scowl at him but stopped when the Uchiha bent down and gave him a quick kiss before sitting and starting his own lunch. Gaara saw none of that however, he was looking out the door that led to the hall, confused at why the boy from his first class would be outside the classroom. He was talking -rather animatedly- to a girl with her hair in two buns and a light pink Chinese top. He turned to Shikamaru who looked to be sleeping with his eyes open, staring at the clouds.

"Hey Shikamaru, who's that?" He jumped in his seat like he actually had been asleep and looked over.

"Who?" Gaara looked over again and pointed to the door.

"Who are they?" He looked over again and finally found who the red head was pointing to.

"The one in green is Rock Lee, the other is Tenten." Just as he finished speaking, Lee appeared to thank Tenten for something before walking in the room.

"Hello my fellow comrades in youth! I-"

"What do you want Lee?" He glared at Sasuke for a moment before he went back to his usual cheerful, loud self.

"I came to ask if our dear Neji-san would be willing to help Gai-sensei and I tomorrow in our gym class." Neji looked up at him and sighed.

"Very well." Lee beamed and posed, making Gaara question the boy's sanity.

"Thank you Neji-san! I'm sure we shall all be grateful for your contribution!" With that he walked away and out of the room, leaving the group in silence for a moment.

"I didn't know you two shared that class." Neji looked up at Naruto and nodded.

"It was…interesting." Sasuke snorted and the Hyuga glared at the back of his head.

"What class do you have next?" Gaara got his roster out again and handed it to Naruto.

"Cool! Most of us have the last class together! Do you know how to get to the two?" Gaara nodded his head. He'd seen them on the way to his first four classes and he knew he could make his way back.

"Great! How do you like your classes so far?" Gaara thought about it before shrugging.

"They seem interesting enough." Naruto quickly grew bored with the conversation and turned to Sasuke who was trying to sleep.

"Hey! Wake up Teme!" Sasuke opened one eye and glared at Naruto who seemed impervious to the raven's glare.

"What Dobe?"

"What class is next?" Sasuke rolled his eyes at Naruto's short memory but answered him anyway.

"Math." Choji laughed as Naruto made a face while Sasuke and Neji just rolled their eyes at the blonde's childish behavior.

"Oi, Shikamaru, what about you?" The lazy boy answered him without lifting his head up from his folded arms.

"Math."

"Cool! Isn't that your next class too Gaara?" The red head nodded.

"The bell's gunna ring soon Teme! Come on, I need to show you something." Naruto dragged Sasuke off and out of the room. Gaara looked after them in confusion before turning to look between Shikamaru and Neji.

"What…" Neji shook his head and got out his book to read while Shikamaru sighed, neither answering him.

XxX

Neji was one of the first people out the door when the bell rang, his class being the farthest away. As soon as Gaara left the classroom, he quickly found a major fault in his own logic. Yes, he _did _know the way to his next class, but he couldn't for the life of him remember as he was bombarded with a sea of people. Shikamaru almost knocked the poor boy over on his way out, sighing when he saw that Gaara wasn't going to move. He put a hand on the other boy's shoulder, making him jump.

"Follow me." Gaara instantly relaxed and quickly nodded, moving out of his way and following him down the hall.

x

When they finally reached their next class Shikamaru automatically went for a window seat, leaving Gaara alone to decide what he wanted to do. Said boy stopped and looked around, only recognizing the two loud girls from earlier. He immediately went to sit next to Shikamaru and hoped neither of them looked over. He nearly jumped out of his skin when Naruto suddenly appeared in the seat in front of him, grinning widely.

"Hey! You find the way ok?" Gaara could feel himself slump when he remembered how he had frozen right outside the classroom. Naruto, being perceptive for once, let the subject with only a 'You'll get it eventually.' Shikamaru watched as Gaara gave Naruto a small smile in thanks.

Then he noticed the same thing he'd seen this morning. Part of his hat twitched. It was so quick, anyone could've missed it if you didn't know what to look for. He felt his curiosity grow and he knew he had to know more about the new student.

x

Math was as boring as predicted. Gaara stared blankly at the space in front of him, sure his brain was putty at this point. Shikamaru grabbed Gaara's wrist as they stood up.

"Come on, you have a free period, right?" Gaara just nodded, his eyes wide. He was too surprised to say anything and their trek in the halls soon got rid of and inclination to speak. His brow furrowed in confusion though when Shikamaru continued to pull him up the flights of stairs. He got really confused when he pushed open the door to the auditorium.

"Where are we going?" Shikamaru finally paused, neither breathing heavy due to the Nara's slow pace.

"Do you have a fear of heights?" Gaara frowned at the odd question.

"No…" He smirked at the red head, thinking how he managed to pull something off that more than half the people in the school couldn't touch.

"Then have a little faith, k?" He looked hesitant but didn't say anything so he took that as a sign that he could continue. He led them behind the stage's curtains and up yet even more stairs.

Gaara's eyes widened when they finally got to their destination. There were three catwalks he hadn't noticed when they first came in going across the top of the seats. The one Shikamaru went down went parallel to the middle isle of seats, giving a perfect view of everything. The lazy boy stopped about halfway down and laid back, staring up at one of the ceilings multiple windows that let in the majority of the room's light. He smiled when he saw the other boy grin and lean over both sides, looking everywhere.

"How did you find this place?" he looked over in time to see the brunette shrug.

"Got bored last year." Gaara nodded and neither of them said anything else, just enjoying the silence.

It seemed to end too soon as Shikamaru sighed and sat up, stretching. Gaara looked over at him curiously from his spot of laying on one of the railings that were on both sides of the cat walk. The brunette looked over and almost had a heart attack when he saw this.

"Get down! You can fall!" Gaara jumped slightly at the usually quiet boy's shout but didn't loose his balance. Instead he simply slid off the railing and sat down, head tilted to the side.

"Better?" Shikamaru let out a deep breath and tried to regulate his heartbeat.

"Yeah, now please don't do that again." He shrugged, looking away.

"Alright." Shikamaru stood up and offered a hand down to the other boy.

"The bell's gunna ring soon." Gaara didn't say anything as he helped him up, missing how Shikamaru's eyes widened slightly. His wrist was so tiny! He hadn't noticed when he'd dragged him up here but he did now. He could easily wrap his entire hand around it with room to spare. He shook his head as they bent down to get their respective books and bag before heading down. Shikamaru was proved right when as soon as they got to the theater doors, the bell rang. Gaara turned to Shikamaru.

"How-"

"This way." Gaara followed Shikamaru silently, still adjusting to the noisy hallways.

x

They got to their final class for the day far quicker than Gaara expected. What really surprised him though was the lack of teacher in the room. He looked around at the other students who acted like this was completely normal. He didn't even have to look to know that Shikamaru had made his way over to the windows. Gaara stayed exactly where he was in the doorway for a moment. He could see Naruto talking to Sasuke near the back with the other boy he'd met this morning. _What was his name? 'K' something…_ They all looked perfectly fine back there and he didn't want to disturb them so he looked over to Shikamaru who already had his head down.

Gaara shifted from foot to foot for a moment before sitting in the front desk closest to the door. Shikamaru looked up when he didn't hear the chair next to him. He looked around until he found Gaara sitting clear on the other side of the room. He sighed when he realized why he sat over there. He looked to the back of the room and caught Sasuke's eye, motioning for him to come over. The raven nodded and turned to Naruto for a second to say something before walking away.

"What do you want Nara?" Said boy pointed to Gaara across the room. Sasuke followed his finger, rolling his eyes when he figured out what he wasn't saying.

"Lazy." He started over anyway, not having anything better to do. Gaara looked up, surprised, when Sasuke tapped him on the shoulder.

"Yes?" The raven stuck his hands in his pockets, looking bored.

"Why're you over here? We're all sitting on the other side." Gaara looked at Sasuke curiously until he looked past him and saw Shikamaru watching them. He gave him a small smile and turned back to Sasuke.

"Thanks." He nodded and walked back to Naruto, walking up behind him and wrapping his arms around the blonde's neck. Naruto didn't even stutter as he did this, simply bringing up a hand to hold onto his arms.

Gaara missed all of this as he walked over to the seat next to Shikamaru, looking over at him, innocent curiosity in his eyes. The lazy boy shrugged, not really having an answer himself.

"It'd be troublesome if you sat somewhere else." Gaara seemed to accept his vague answer and settled down in his seat, happy to just sit there quietly and watch everyone else. Shikamaru was this and let out a content sigh before proceeding to fall back asleep. Gaara had no clue how he could sleep with all the noise but he somehow managed.

The bell rang and Gaara looked up, expecting to see the teacher at least _in the room_. He was no where to be seen though, the space behind the desk empty.

"Don't worry about it, he's always late." He was surprised when he looked up to see Naruto in the row in front of him, Sasuke on the window side with Kiba on the outside of the three person desk. He looked around to find that the rest of the students were doing the same, still talking mind you, but finding their seats within the classroom.

He almost groaned when he saw a familiar flash of green near the front of the class. Shikamaru looked over at him curiously at his odd behavior but couldn't find what had caused it.

Ten minutes later the door finally opened and the class hushed, watching their teacher walk over to his desk and lean against the front of it. He looked up from his book after five more minutes, scanning the faces in front of him with an indifferent air. He finally sighed and put his book down behind him, speaking for the first time.

"I am Hatake Kakashi. Welcome to your health class."

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><p>Another chapter up! Sorry this took so long guys v.v<p>

I hope you all liked it! ^^ Why not tell me by pressing the magic button that says 'review'? :)


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